


Lightning in a Bottle

by WroughtBetwixt



Series: Thallen Week 2015 [3]
Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Complicated Relationships, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Enemy Lovers, Heroes to Villains, Implied Relationships, Implied/Referenced Suicide, M/M, Post-Finale, Series Spoilers, Time Travel Fix-It, Twisted and Fluffy Feelings
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-05-28
Updated: 2015-05-28
Packaged: 2018-04-01 15:41:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,133
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4025503
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WroughtBetwixt/pseuds/WroughtBetwixt
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Barry tries to fix the past and save Eddie's life, but finds himself unable to change the timeline. He gives up and withdraws from the world, until an unexpected arrival brings him hope... but at what cost?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Lightning in a Bottle

**Author's Note:**

> Spoilers for the season 1 finale should be a given here. Some tags are for the future-- I intend to expand this fic into more chapters, but it might be slow going. We'll see! Sorry, skipped the relationship build-up, but there are flashbacks planned. :) Thanks for reading!

It had been a year since the wormhole.  
  
At first, Barry had tried to fix the timeline. Tried to go back and save Eddie, tried to stop the disaster that had shaken the city. But each time, the time stream deposited him seconds after that fatal gunshot, and each time he had to hold his lover in his arms, choking out one last goodbye before Eddie’s life slipped away. Each time, he had to race up to the city to try and stop the black hole from destroying the planet. And he succeeded in that. Always. But after three times of trying to save Eddie, his abilities and willpower fading each time, Barry found himself unable to go back at all. The time stream had closed it’s doors to him.  
  
He carried on in the world that formed after. At least, he tried; Central City was wrecked, with crime exploding everywhere. STAR Labs was raided soon after the disaster, partly for supplies and partly out of spite. Ronnie had taken Caitlin and gotten out of the city. Cisco was missing. Joe had sent Iris to Starling City, while Oliver had come to Central to try and help when Barry, overwhelmed and defeated, began to falter. Hell, even Captain Cold had sought him out, trying to convince Barry to get back on the streets. In the end, Barry just didn’t have anything left to give. Joe got wrapped up in work, trying to save the city. Iris tried to reach out to Barry, but it was too awkward; what could you tell your best friend, former crush, and foster brother, who’d been dating your ex-boyfriend, who’d killed himself to stop your homicidal ex-boss from the future?  
  
There was nothing that could be said, and nothing Barry wanted to hear.  
  
And so the months ticked by, with only a red flash showing up now and then when Joe was in trouble, vanishing after without a word. They didn’t know where he went to, the rest of the time. No one asked. No one thought to look in the depths of STAR Labs. If they had, maybe they’d have found Barry, leaned against the wall of the particle accelerator, staring where a wormhole had once been. Watching. Waiting. For what? He didn't know. But when a voice finally echoed through the tunnel, making Barry jump up and spin around, it wasn’t Eddie. Barry blinked at the figure that appeared, seemingly from thin air, next to him.   
  
“That only took forever,” a familiar voice muttered. Hands moved up to remove goggles, and Barry suddenly realized he was looking at Cisco. “Hey, buddy. Miss me?”  
  
Barry couldn’t speak. He just lunged at Cisco, wrapping his friend in a massive hug. “M’sorry,” he whispered when his voice began to work. “M’sorry, I tried to find you, but I couldn’t.”  
  
Cisco smoothed Barry’s matted hair, humming a soothing sound. “It’s okay, man. It’s okay. I wasn’t anywhere you could find me. It’s okay.”  
  
“Wh... what?”  
  
“The name’s Vibe,” Cisco grinned, pulling back a little. “At least that’s what they call me in the future. Turns out you’re not the only one who can travel through time. Surprise.”  
  
Opening and shutting his mouth, Barry ended up just shaking his head. “How?”  
  
The grin on Cisco’s face faded. “Wells... He told me that night that I was a metahuman, too. When everything went to hell, I kind of felt myself tugged towards the black hole, too. Everyone else was running, shit was falling down. No one noticed me slip away. I don’t know. It just felt natural, you know? I ended up... somewhere else. And once I learned how to control it, I just kinda...” He trailed off, looking Barry in the eyes. “I saw you, you know. Going back in time, over and over. Trying to save Eddie.”  
  
Barry’s face crumpled. “Cisco, don’t...”  
  
“Hear me out,” Cisco gently interrupted. “After everything you’ve done for us, Barry, I didn’t want to come home until I could come back with something.”  
  
Taking Barry’s hand, Cisco deposited what looked like an intricate glass sphere, with little metal lines and gears secured around it. Inside, indigo lightning crackled, as if trying to escape the confines of the object. Barry felt the heat of it through the gloves he was wearing. It was beautiful, and he couldn’t look away. “What is this, Cisco?”  
  
“You know how Ray Palmer managed to develop technology to shrink...” He paused when Barry’s forehead wrinkled in confusion. “Ah. See, the future has a lot of interesting things. It’s gonna blow your mind. The point being, the question isn’t so much about what this is, as to who.”  
  
“I don’t understand.”  
  
“I found him, Barry.”  
  
Barry’s head whipped towards Cisco, green eyes boring into Cisco’s own. “What do you mean?”  
  
“The reason you couldn’t get back to save him is kind of complicated. But the thing is, when the wormhole reopened, his body... He somehow ended up in the future. It’s a long story, and I’m not sure I can share it all. But we managed to capture him, yes.”  
  
“... Capture.”  
  
Cisco held Barry’s gaze, at least for a moment, but then he glanced away. All the humor and cheer was gone from his expression. “Look. Eddie... What happened to him, it changed him. I’m not the only one who walked away from that night different. He’s not the same as you remember him, Barry.”  
  
Barry looked down at the sphere, watching the lightning crackle inside. Feeling the pulse of it sing to him. It was a familiar feeling, and a sense of dread slowly settled into his stomach. “Changed how?”  
  
“In the future, they called him Cobalt Blue. He’s a speedster. Like you.” Cisco hesitated. “Sort of.”  
  
“He turned out like Wells, didn’t he?” Barry asked. He didn’t look at Cisco. “He’s like the Reverse Flash.”  
  
“He’s _a_ Reverse Flash. Wells isn’t the last.”  
  
Barry just closed his eyes; he could feel his chest tightening, his eyes stinging. For a long time, he said nothing. When he finally did speak again, he sounded small. Brittle. “Why bring him back?”  
  
“Because I’ve seen too many times, over and over, how it’s going to kill you inside if I didn’t try.” Cisco put a hand on Barry’s back, drawing closer. Barry leaned into his touch. Lowering his voice, he carefully rubbed circles between Barry’s shoulders. “I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t worried. The things I’ve seen... It was hard to find him, and harder to catch him. But I thought if anyone could save him, it’ll be you. He deserves that chance. So do you.”  
  
There was another long moment of silence. “How do we do this?”  
  
Cisco gave Barry a tiny smile, putting his goggles back on. “That’s the spirit.”


End file.
